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It was a genuine “where's the beef” session for California's nearly 10-year-old, $3 billion state stem cell agency.

A member of the only state body legally delegated to oversee the California Institute of Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) and its governing board wanted an answer to a simple question: What cures has the agency produced as promised during the 2004 ballot campaign that created the state program?

The occasion was a meeting Jan. 22 in downtown Los Angeles of the Citizens Financial Accountability and Oversight Committee, a group headed by state controller John Chiang. It meets once a year to examine the activities of the agency.

Jim Lott, a long-time member of the panel and an executive vice president of COPE Health Solutions of Los Angeles, was pressing CIRM Chairman Jonathan Thomas and Ellen Feigal, CIRM's senior vice president for research and development.

According to the transcript, Lott, who described himself as a “big supporter” of CIRM, said,
“I think when many voted for this, they thought there were going to be some cures coming out of this effort. And...